Vestibule-car



(No Model.)

S. W. TANNER.

VESTIBULE CAR.

No. 461,927. Patented Oct. 2'7, 1891.

I WE M I I t I I vs iv 0A Wain;

-HCtornay UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

SAMUEL \V. TANNER, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO.

VESTIBULE-CAR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 461,927, dated October27, 1891.

Application filed July 20, 1891.

T0 aZZ whom, it Hwy concern.-

Be it known that I, SAMUEL W. TANNER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Cleveland, in the county of Cuyahoga and State of Ohio, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Vestibule-Cars; and I dohereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription of the invention, which will enable others skilled in theart to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention has reference to vestibulecars; and the object of theinvention is to im-' prove the passage connections between thevestibules of cars connected in train, so that the safety of passengerswill be promoted and the construction of the vestibule mechanismsimplified and improved.

To these ends the invention consists in a double-walled frame, or rathera frame having doublealled or hollow sides and plain ends and made up ina single rigid structure which is bodily and wholly movable oradjustable in response to the movements of the car according as the caris vibrated one way or another, all substantially as shown anddescribed, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional viewof one end of a car containing myimprovement and showing a verticalsectional elevation of the said frame. Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectionalview of the extreme end of a car-frame on about the plane of theplatform and showing a plan of the platform and a cross-section of myimproved closely-walled frame and of the hinged side panels connectedtherewith. Fig. 3 is a sec- 1 tion of one side of the walled frame online :r

m, Fig. 1; and Fig.4 is a plan view of one side of said frame, showingthe slot in the top and part of the cross-connecting plate. Fig. 5 is afront elevation of two of the vertical panels which flank thevestibule-frame at the sides. In the drawings, A represents, say, therear cross-frame or end of a car, having the usual entrance Ct andplatform or vestibule B, covered by the hood or bonnet C. These partsmay be built in any well-known Way and do not in themselves constitutemy invention.

D represents a rectangular frame set between the platform B and hood 0in line with the door or entrance of the carand made of any suitablewidth, which may be greater or less than the width of the main door. nThis frame is peculiar and novel in that it has double walls (I d ateach side extending the full length of the frame from top to bottom andalarge opening (1 in its upper end and a corresponding opening (Z in itslower end. These double-walled hollow sides are connected at the endsbysuitable cross-plates d and d or other suitable means, and the wholeconstitutes a single rigid structure adapted to accommodate itself tothe curvatures 1n the road and to move back on one side or the other, orboth, as the vibration or thrusts of the car may require, and to assumeany other position incident to the movements of the car and requisite ina frame serving in this position.

The heavy or wide double walls give the requisite firmness and. rigidityto the frame,

displace the hitherto flexible connections,

which I deem objectionable on many accounts,

and afford. a space in which the necessary spring connections can beadvantageously made. Thus to support the frame in posit on I employ oneach side a strong rod E, which connects the hood and the platform.These rods pass through the hollow sides at about the center thereof andthrough the slots or openings d and d at the end, by which the frame isgiven the necessary freedom of movement. Then in order that the framemay be held normally in proper relation to these rods and to theextremity of the car, so as to cover half-way the space to the next carin train, I introduce a series of spiral springs F, which are secured atone end against the inside of the face of the frame and at the other tothe said rod. Two or more of these springs may be employed, and theframe has limited lateral and back-and -forth movement on the rods F,which may occur while the springs assert their tension in any of thepositions it may assume. The weight of the frame rests wholly on theplatform of the car, on which it is free to slide. The wide spacebetween the walls on each side affords a wide facing d for each wall,and when this facing is brought flatly against the facing 0f theopposite frame the cars may assume widely-oppositepositions on thetrack,as sometimes occurs when two coupled cars swing suddenly inopposite directions, and yet by reason of this great width keep thespace between the two frames absolutely closed. This is an exceedinglyimportant precaution, and since the two frames are rigid such width offacing is absolutely necessary to avoid danger or accident. Upon eitherside the said frame D is flanked by vertically-arranged panels G, two ormore, pivoted together and to the said frame, and the outside supportingrods or parts H extending between the platform and 100d. accommodatethemselves to the lateral play .of frame D,and in order that said framemay always keep its central position in respect to the sides of the carwhen under normal conditions I provide the middle joints of the saidpanels with cross-springs h,which exert a constant tension againsttheopening of the joint. Hence when the frame D has been forcibly borne toeither side of the center it will,when the pressure is relieved, bemoved back to proper position by the operation of these springs. I donot, however wish to beunderstood as limited in the invention to theapplication of the springs h as here shown, for the reason that theymight be placed or arranged in some other position and serve the samepurpose; nor do I consider the invention limited to the exactarrangement of springs F as here shown,there being equivalentarrangements and constructions which might be suggested and which theinvention is understood to cover.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a vestibule-car, a frame forming part of the passage-way from onecar to the other,

These panels have width enough to.

having rigid double-walled sides and a wide flat front bearing for theopposite frame, and springs bearing against said frame to keep it out inworking position, substantially as de scribed.

2. In a vestibule-car, a rigid double-walled frame set upon the platformand overlapping the same, and rods fixed at their ends and extendingthrough between said walls to hold said frame in position, substantiallyas described.

3. In a vestibule car, a frame having rigid and closed double-walledsides with an open space between the sides, supporting-rods extendingvertically through said open space, and springs within said wallsbearing against said rods and the inside of said frame, substantially asdescribed.

4. In a vestibule-car, a rigid frame having double-walled sides andopenings in the ends of the walls, a supporting rod extending throughsaid openings and rigidly secured at its ends, springs between saidframe and said rod to bear the frame normally outward, and flexiblepanels on the sides of said frame, substantially as described. v

5. In a vestibule-car, a rigid double-walled frame movably supported onthe platform of the car and overlapping the same, and springs betweensaid walls to bear the frame outward,-

in combination with flexible panels pivoted to the sides of said frame,substantially as described.

Witness my hand to the foregoing specification this 30th day of June,1891.

SAMUEL W. TANNER.

Witnesses: V

H. T. FISHER, H. L. MCLANE.

